At 07:51 2/3/2004 -0500, you wrote: >And then there is the one area where pianos and cars are dissimilar - >performance. Most (as in 99+%) car drivers view the car as utilitarian - >"I need this car to get me here in one piece without a lot of hassle". >Many (some/whatever) piano players are performance-oriented - at least >many more than are car drivers. That is they have a greater interest in >their piano working very well - sounding super-good - playing smooth and >controllable - again, at least more so than the typical car driver. > >Although, the piano and the RACE car would be quite comparable in this >manner. (And yes, unfortunately there are many pianos that serve a >utilitarian role exclusively - I think of the beat-to-$%&* Samick grand I >tuned the other day at a big hotel......) > >I guess what I am trying to say is that typical car performance is more >black-and-white, while piano performance has many more shades of grey. >When you get a new water pump put on your car, the thing is either quiet >and leak free, or it is not. When you get a new set of hammers or bass >strings put on your piano, well, I think you can see this now - just quite >a few more shades of grey! > >My 2 cents worth (maybe less).... > >Terry Farrell Terry, One size definitely does not fit all, and not everything has an exact parallel, but you can generally find something close enough to help you explain either the malfunction or the remedy to someone with no clue as to the internal piano workings. (~99 44/100% of customers) Recently drawn analogy: I have one long time customer who had an infant and an elderly upright when I first tuned for them. They then had a Wurlitzer spinet and now a new Samick console. The girl is now in high school and is outplaying the Samick. The parents realise this, but they got the best they could within their budget. They know that they went from a model T to a Henry J to a little Kia. They also know that the girl could handle a Corvette. Not exact, but pianos are art, right? Conrad Hoffsommer Decorah, IA - Certified Calibration Technician for Bio-powered Digitally Activated Lever Action Tone Generation Systems. - Pianotech Flamesuit Purveyor - Apprentice Curmudgeon
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